Press for beet-pulp and the like.



G. &- A. LE DOGTE. PRESS FOR BERT PULP AND THE LIKE.

APPLIOATION FILED mm: 30, 1910.

1,004,283, Patented Sept. 26, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

COLUMBIA PLANOIJRAPH C0,, WMMINGTON, D C- G. & A. LE DOGTE.

PRESS FOR BBET PULP AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED mm. 30, 1910.

1,004,283, Patented Sept. 26, 1911.

%0. W 31%7ZMW97M COLUMBIA PLANMRAPN CO., WMNINIITON, D. C.'

15 ation of the press at the time of an acci- 40 7 escape of the material pressed.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGES LE DOCTE, F BRUSSELS, AND ARMANI) LE DOC'IE, 0F GEMBLOUX, BELGIUM.

PRESS FOR BEET-PULP AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 26, 1911.

tion.

Our invention relates to presses for beet pulp, employed in sugar works and distilleries and is for the purpose of remedying certain well known inconveniences found in beet pulp presses hitherto used, which principally consist in the entire or partial evacudental modification in the physical state of the substance to be pressed; in the impossibility of automatically reestablishing the normal action of the press in case of complete 3 evacuation, and in the impossibility of regulating the evacuation of the pressed material at different points of the outlet opening of the press.

With said purposes in view, the invention consists in the combination with the circular evacuation opening of an ordinary pulp press, of an auxiliary outlet regulator which exercises a variable and regulatable action at diii'erent points of the orifice and prevents the evacuation of the material treated as long as a pressure determined inadvance is not reached. In carrying the invention into practice this regulator is preferably constituted by a series of shutters mounted on hinges, provided with regulatable counter-weights and arranged so as to close, when in the state of rest, the circular outlet opening of the press and to consequently oppose a regulatable resistance to the free The annexed drawing illustrates by way of example, a constructlon of the invention.

Figure 1 diagrammatically illustrates in vertical section the essential parts of an ordinary pulp press of a known kind. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on line A B of Fig. 1 and shows a regulator constructed according to the invention in its position of inaction.

The press shown in Fig. 1 comprises a perforated sheet metal cylinder at in which a cone 0 provided with paddles (Z rotates. The material to be pressed, introduced at the top of the press by means of the funnel e, is carried along by the cone and paddles and is pressed between the cone and the perforated cylinder a which is surrounded by the jacket b provided with an outflow orifice for the water extracted. The ma terial pressed and freed from this water, is evacuated at the lower part of the apparatus by the annular opening o constituted by the space separating the extremity of the perforated cylinder at from a conical disk at which forms an extension of the rotary cone 0 and acts as a support and a bearing for the same. The opening 0 can be varied in the ordinary manner that is to say, it can be increased or diminished by lowering or raising the disk 11. by means of a suitable mechanical device not shown.

As is well known, when the opening 6 reaches a certain amplitude very slight differences in the physical state or composition of the matter treated in the apparatus are often sufficient to prevent the pressure being produced. In this case, the mass or pulp has no longer sufiicient resistance at the outlet and simply slides along the cone 0 and escapes through the opening 0 without being pressed. This happens for instance when the pulp has become too soft by reason of extraction of sugar at too high temperature or from cessation of the work of extraction by having maintained the pulp too long in maceration or when the pulp is made from damaged beet, or when it is introduced into the press at too high a temperature. It also happens when the feed is stopped that the press runs completely emptied unless the workman in charge stops the rotation. in time. A fresh feed is then not sufiicient to reestablish the normal operation and the material introduced simply slides to the bottom of the press and escapes by the opening 0 without having been submitted to any pressure. To remedy these inconveniences and further to allow the state of dryness of the pressed pulp to be regulated at all points of the annular outlet 0 so as to render the composition of all the pulp produced uniform, in the construction shown a series of controlling elements are arranged around the outlet orifice 0. Each element comprises an immovable part h, fixed by bolts on the exterior jacket Z), and a shutter 42 connected to the part h by a hinge 2'. The shutter 'v is provided with a rod 15 carrying a cast counterweight p provided with a set screw. The counterweight can slide on the rod 2, and be fixed at any place thereon. The various shutters are arranged side by side on the circumference of the jacket 6 and are of slightly tapered shape so that in the state of rest, they almost entirely close the annu- 1 The rod t provided with the counterweight 10 holds the corresponding} shutter 41 against the extremity of the coni- 3 cal disk 92 at a variable pressure according; to the position of the counterweight. Eachg shutter may be provided with a hook en gaging in an eye fixed on the jacket I) and allowing of maintaining it completely raised that is to say, to leave the corresponding part of the outlet opening 0 entirely free, when this position is considered useful for; obtaining a desired result. It can be easily lar outlet 0.

understood that the application of an outlet auxiliary regulator of this kind procures j 5- scribed provided with an evacuation open- 1. The complete or partial evacuation of the press cannot take place when the feed the following advantages:

is regular, the outlet opening being never completely free by reason of the obstacle formed by the elements of the regulator of outflow which only open gradually, and

more or less completely by the pressure .of the evacuated pulp and by the greater or less quantity of this pulp present at any. spot of the outlet. The matter cannot thenescape freely without pressure; there must be a preliminary pressure suflicient to over- 5 come the resistance opposed to the outflow by the elements of the regulator and this regular and continuous obstacle has the effect of constantly maintaining the press in a condition of normal function.

2. In case of complete evacuation of the press by failure of the feed, all the elements of the outlet regulator are in a state of rest, that is to say, in the position in which they completely close the outlet opening 0. The

recharging of the press and its normal function is automatically reestablished, no evacuation being able to take place before the interior pressure has reached a sufficient degree to overcome the resistance produced by the different elements of the outlet regulator. v

3. By suitably regulating the outlet opening 0 as well as the degree of action of the elements of the regulator according to the condition of the material evacuated to the different positions of these elements, the composition of the matter pressed can be regulated as one can increase or lessen as desired the outflow at each part of the press corresponding to each of the elements of the regulator.

What we claim is:

1. In combination, a press of the kind described provided with an evacuation opening and with an outlet regulator, and an auxiliary outlet regulator operatively associated with said opening, said auxiliary regulator being responsive to a predetermined pressure within the press whereby the evacuation of the material at the opening is prevented as long as said predetermined pressure is not reached.

2. In combination, a press of the kind described, provided with an evacuation opening and with an outlet regulator, and a plurality of controlling elements arranged around the evacuation opening and forming an auxiliary outlet regulator, each of said elements act-ing independently and each of said elements being responsive to a predetermined pressure within the press whereby a variable pressure can be secured at difi'erent points of the opening.

3. In combination, a press of the kind deing and with a conical disk cooperating with said opening, a plurality of controlling elements, arranged around the evacuation opening, and means cooperating with said controlling elements whereby the action of said controlling elements can be varied at will.

4. In combination, a press of the kind described provided with an evacuation opening and with a conical disk cooperating with said opening, and pivotally mounted elements and weights acting on said elements whereby the evacuation opening is normally closed by said elements.

5. In a press for beet-pulp the combination of an outer jacket provided with an outlet opening at its lower end, a metal cylinder in said jacket, a cone rotating in said cylinder, a conical disk adapted to vary the section of the outlet opening, a plurality of shutters pivotally mounted on the outer jacket, counterweights acting on said shutters whereby said shutters are adapted to offer a variable resistance to the discharge of the material through the outlet opening and means for putting said shutters out of action each independently of the others.

6. In a press for beet pulp the combination of an outer jacket, a perforated metal cylinder in said jacket, a discharge opening at the lower end of the outer jacket and perforated metal cylinder, a cone adapted to be rotated in the perforated metal cylinder, a conical disk placed coaxially with the cone in the discharge opening, a plurality of shutters arranged around the discharge opening, fixed parts attached :to the outer jacket and to which the shutters are pivot- In testimony whereof we have signed our ally connected, a rod projecting from each names to this specification in the presence of 10 shutter a counterweight adapted to be distwo subscribing witnesses.

placed along said rod' and acting to hold GEORGES LE DOCTE. the corresponding shutter in a position in ARMAND LE DOCTE. which the corresponding portion of the dis- Witnesses:

charge opening is closed and means for plac- J ACQUE BEDE,

ing each shutter out of action. GREGORY PHELAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

